Updated

Pakistan's military says a key border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan has reopened nearly two weeks after it was closed in response to Afghan protesters burning the Pakistani flag at a border rally.

At a Thursday news conference, army spokesman Lf. Gen. Asim Saleem Bajwa says the decision to reopen the border was made after Afghan officials apologized over the incident near the Pakistani border town of Chaman.

The Chaman border crossing is used by thousands of people daily to visit relatives.

Bajwa says Pakistan is strengthening its border management system to prevent militants, including Islamic State group fighters, from entering Pakistan.

He says Pakistan on Thursday arrested six militants, including two al-Qaida operatives, in Faisalabad, a city in Punjab province.